Combis project managers working within the PMO are responsible for the company's largest and most complex deliveries. On an individual project, the project manager is accountable for the plan, deadlines, resources, risks, and communication with the client, while the technical lead is responsible for implementing and verifying the solution. At the organisational level, the PMO develops the methodology, assigns project managers to complex projects, and checks that the agreed rules are followed. Performance is measured through key project milestones, person-days spent, financial results, and the quality of documentation, testing and handover. Its particular value becomes apparent when a risk is identified early enough to adjust the plan or priorities, or to involve those authorised to make a decision.
A major infrastructure project she cites was completed within the agreed deadline and budget despite incomplete documentation and decisions that depended on the client. Lessons learned from projects are subsequently analysed and used to improve the methodology, processes and day-to-day work. Ivana Skočanić, Project Manager in Combis's Project Management Office, discusses the division of responsibilities, performance measurement and the sharing of experience with ICTbusiness Media – ICTbusiness.info.
Where does the project manager's responsibility end and that of the PMO begin, particularly when serious problems arise involving deadlines, costs, available resources or the quality of delivery?
The project manager is responsible for the individual project: the plan, deadlines, allocation of resources, risks, and communication with the client. At Combis, we clearly distinguish this role from that of the technical lead. The project manager is responsible for what is delivered and when, while the technical lead is responsible for how the solution will be implemented and technically verified.
The PMO operates at the organisational level. It is responsible for the project management methodology, assigns project managers to complex projects, and checks whether the agreed rules are being applied.
When serious problems arise, the project manager remains responsible for the project. Their job is to assess the impact on deadlines, costs, or quality in good time and propose appropriate measures, rather than trying to resolve the issue alone. The PMO helps ensure that the problem becomes visible and reaches those who can make decisions about it. Decisions that go beyond the scope of an individual project, such as securing additional resources or changing priorities, are made by the project sponsor and the relevant line managers.
A clear division of responsibilities is important, but it is equally important to start discussing deviations from the plan in good time.
Which specific indicators are used to measure project management success, and how much does the PMO contribute to profitability, risk reduction, more efficient use of resources and customer satisfaction?
Project success is not measured solely by whether it is completed on time and within budget. We track the achievement of key project milestones, person-days spent, financial performance, and the involvement of external collaborators. Quality indicators are also important, such as approved technical documentation and test scenarios, successful acceptance testing, and the formal handover of project deliverables to the maintenance team.
We manage risks actively from the start and throughout the project. This includes identifying and assessing them in good time, assigning responsibility and implementing measures to prevent them from materialising or mitigate their consequences. The project manager links risks to the plan, timelines, costs and decisions required, while the PMO provides a common framework and a systematic approach to risk management.
The PMO's value lies in whether risks and deviations are identified early enough to leave time for adjusting the plan and taking appropriate measures. In this way, the PMO contributes to better decisions and the project's business performance.
Which specific examples from Combis projects best illustrate situations in which timely PMO intervention prevented a serious delay, financial loss or project failure?
The PMO's greatest value often lies not in intervening after a project has entered a crisis, but in identifying risks and ensuring decisions about them are made early enough.
On one major infrastructure project, we faced a fixed deadline, incomplete project documentation, and information and decisions that depended on the client. We could not eliminate those circumstances, but we could manage them. We regularly monitored outstanding issues and dependencies, defined appropriate measures for key risks, and communicated their impact on deadlines and planned activities to the client and our internal management in good time. When decisions were delayed, we adjusted the sequence of activities and worked together to find feasible solutions.
Despite these constraints, the project was completed within the agreed deadline and budget. The PMO provided a clear risk management framework, ensured that risks were visible at the appropriate level, and involved the people able to make the necessary decisions in time.
How important are technical knowledge, an understanding of the customer's business, financial management, communication skills, and previous professional experience for successfully managing complex ICT projects, and which competencies are the hardest to replace in practice?
A project manager does not have to be a technical expert to manage a complex ICT project successfully. They need to understand the solution well enough to identify dependencies and connect technical activities to the project's scope, deadlines, and objectives. Previous experience in a technical role is an advantage because it makes it easier to understand the technical context and work with teams, but it is not a prerequisite for successful project management.
However, understanding the technical solution is only one part of the bigger picture. It is equally important to understand the client's needs and what they want to achieve through the project. My experience of managing projects on the client side has enabled me to see the project from that perspective as well. The goal is not merely to implement a technical solution, but to guide the project towards the objective for which it was launched.
Financial management and methodologies can be learned, while experience helps people recognise patterns and assess consequences. In practice, however, the hardest capabilities to replace are judgement, communication skills and the ability to bring together people with different, sometimes conflicting interests. A project manager must know how to raise an uncomfortable issue, influence others without formal authority and make decisions in uncertain circumstances.
Tools and methods can be learned, but the ability to lead people and make sound decisions develops through experience.
How is knowledge shared among project managers within Combis's PMO, how are successful and unsuccessful projects analysed, and how are the lessons learned turned into concrete improvements in methodologies and day-to-day work?
Knowledge sharing in Combis's PMO takes place through common methodologies, templates and procedures, but also through the regular exchange of experience among project managers. We discuss open questions and current issues together because similar challenges often arise on different projects. This allows us to compare approaches, identify potential risks in good time and apply experience gained on other projects. New project managers are introduced to the work gradually, with support from more experienced colleagues in applying the methodology, using project templates, and resolving specific project situations.
At the end of each project, we collect lessons learned to establish what went well, what did not, and what we could do differently next time. Since individual lessons often point to similar causes or challenges, we group them into recurring patterns. Based on those patterns, we develop proposals for improving processes, methodologies, and day-to-day work. In this way, experience from one project becomes applicable to other projects too.
The goal is for lessons learned not to remain merely an archived record, but to lead to concrete changes in how future projects are managed across the organisation.
How does the growing number and complexity of projects involving artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, cloud computing and ICT infrastructure modernisation change the organisation of the PMO, planning practices, risk management and the need for new specialisations?
Such projects are rarely purely technological. Alongside implementation itself, they increasingly involve regulatory and security requirements, data governance and privacy issues, multiple manufacturers and subcontractors, and licences and subscriptions with their own deadlines and terms. The number of dependencies is growing, and so is the number of points at which a project can get stuck.
This changes how projects are planned, and risks are managed. Before implementation begins, it is necessary to confirm the scope, prerequisites, availability of infrastructure and licences, security requirements, and acceptance criteria. With cloud services, it is important to track activation dates, the start of billing, and renewal dates because technical decisions directly affect the operating model and costs.
A project manager does not have to be an expert in every technology, but must understand its specific characteristics well enough to identify risks, ask the right questions, and involve the relevant experts in good time.
The PMO must continuously encourage collaboration between project managers and technical, security, legal, and business experts. The more complex the technology, the more project success depends on whether the right questions were asked and the right specialists were involved at the right time.
